The CDR, supported by Boeing, NASA, and the Air Force, approved the design for the Crew Access Tower, Crew Access Arm as well as the White Room that will allow the flight crews the ability to safely ingress and egress Boeing’s CST-100 crew module for launch. In addition, the team reviewed the conceptual design of the emergency egress system which is similar in design to the space shuttle basket escape system.

“This was a critical milestone to ensure all elements are in place to begin the construction as early as this fall to support the Boeing team and crewed launches of CST-100 from SLC-41,” said Ellen Plese, director, ULA Human Launch Services. “As ULA was creating the innovative new design elements for the pad, human safety factors were the primary consideration.”

“We have made great strides with ULA in the development of the CST-100 emergency detection system, the launch vehicle adaptor and now the crew access tower,” added John Mulholland, Boeing vice president of Commercial Programs and Commercial Crew Program manager. “Our focus is on human safety, and meeting these goals ahead of schedule puts us in a good position as we look forward to the next phase of the Commercial Crew Program.”

Once the work begins at SLC-41, the construction of the new elements to support human spaceflight will take approximately 18 months and will not impact any scheduled launches at the pad.

“The beauty of the plan is the integrated fashion in which the construction will be handled,” said Plese. “We will be constructing each segment of the new tower and access arm at an off-site location and performing assembly at the pad between launches. This allows ULA to continue its full manifest of launches from SLC-41 while preparing the pad for future commercial crew missions.”

With more than a century of combined heritage, United Launch Alliance is the nation’s most experienced and reliable launch service provider. ULA has successfully delivered more than 80 satellites to orbit that provide critical capabilities for troops in the field, aid meteorologists in tracking severe weather, enable personal device-based GPS navigation and unlock the mysteries of our solar system. Bringing rocket science down to earth.

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Don’t forget! The Geminids meteor shower peaks overnight TONIGHT. Will you be looking up? https://t.co/kE0UO8wYcdTo set a course in space (say, to Jupiter), we aim for where Jupiter will be. More about orbital maneuvers: https://t.co/qhvcPZ8FSORT @NASA: LIVE NOW: Watch as we test 1 of the 4 engines that will power our @NASA_SLS rocket on future deep-space human missions:https://t.…Looking forward to returning human launch to U.S. soil! #AtlasV #Starliner https://t.co/Hq6WCtBE9QThis week marks “launchiversaries” for 3 @NatReconOfc missions: NROL-24 (pictured), NROL-35 and NROL-21. ULA has la… https://t.co/KQZ4IFbysGBeautiful photo! 🚀🙌🏽 https://t.co/ULCnONOkMb#TFW you get photo bombed by the #DeltaIV Heavy that will launch @ParkerSunProbe. Thanks to the @SEDSSpaceVision at… https://t.co/Xmby5Nb9nS#OTD in 2007, ULA’s #DeltaII lifted off with the COSMO-Skymed 2 mission. Delta II launched all 4 of the COSMO Skyme… https://t.co/dcTBB3HG62RT @NASA_LSP: ICYMI: NOAA’s GOES-S Arrives at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center for Launch Processing, https://t.co/kP3Xl9eaUV https://t.co/C4pgx…RT @STLScienceCtr: Former astronaut @Astro_Ferg is discussing the new sleek, blue @Boeing spacesuit with local middle school students. This…@torybruno @fdicosimo The direct link to models is https://t.co/4lyPq8eXw8RT @NatReconOfc: @ulalaunch https://t.co/tEIcZJa7ygRT @NatReconOfc: 2017 = four successful launches for NRO! And we're looking forward to 2018 when we will launch #NROL47 onboard a @ulalaunc…#OTD in 2016, ULA’s #DeltaIV rocket lifted off with the eighth Wideband Global SATCOM mission (@WGS8) for the… https://t.co/x2ocbxRiqlRT @spacechelle: Some very cool space models here at @SpaceComExpo this week! @ulalaunch rockets & @OrbitalATK #Cygnus (I couldn’t resist g…Don't forget to stop by ULA's #SpaceComExpo booth for a rocket pic before you head out today! https://t.co/Ofytfe7PuRRT @DeptofDefense: On Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese forces tried to destroy the U.S. military’s will to fight. It didn’t work. The resolve and for…@julia_bergeron @torybruno @45thSpaceWing Hrm. That was in 2015: https://t.co/WDbg7U5ROERT @george_sowers: Bernard Kutter of @ulalaunch.com giving keynote speech at #SpaceComExpo https://t.co/SIJ4Mj7lAiHey #SpaceComExpo! Don’t miss ULA’s Bernard Kutter’s keynote at 11:30amCT. See you in Ballroom A!